Indicator element



Feb. 18, 1930. 5.1050 1,747,234

INDI CATOR ELEMENT Filed March 21, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVE OR 2 ATORNEY Feb. 18, 1930. GELOSO 1,747,234

INDICATOR ELEMENT Filed March 21, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb.18, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT orricr.

JOHN GELOSO, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, T0PILOT RADIO & TUBE CORPORATION, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OFDELAWARE INDICATOR ELEMENT Application filed March 21, 1928. Serial No.263,386.

This invention relates to improvements in control elements for radioreceiving apparatus, being particularly directed to indicatlng mechanismapplied in association with said control elements.

Broadly it is an object of this invention to provide for a novel form ofcontrol for operating the tuning means or other electrical elements of aradio receiver, from the front panel of the receiver, the degree ofdisplacement or actuation of said tuning means or other electricalelements being illustrated at the front of the panel by means ofilluminated visible indicators adapted to be progressively disclosed.

Specifically this invention contemplates the application of mechanismactuated at the front of the panel for controlling the movement oftuning or other electrical members disposed to the rear of the panel,through intermediate means operable directly from controls on the frontpanel and which intermediate means carries indicia thereon whereby thedegree of displacement of the tuning or other electrical means isvisibly and clearly disclosed to the operator at the front of the panel.v

Further it is an object of this invention to provide for a control forthe tuning elements or other electrical elements in a radio receiver,

comprising of a drum member coupled androtatable with the tuning orother elements and operable from the front panel of the receiver throughactuation of a. knob or control means, the said drum being adapted tohave indica thereon, which are disclosed to the operator through theilluminated aperture at the front of the receiver. M

Still further it is an object of this invention to provide for a controlfortuning or other electrical elements in aradio'receiver comprising ofa drum or series of drums coupled with said tuning or other units, allof which are disposed to the rear of the panel and which tuning or otherelectrical units are actuated through the displacement of said drum ordrums carrying indicia thereon, through the medium of a friction driveacting upon the drum or drums and controllable through the operation ofa knob at the front of the panel.

In general then it is an object of this invention to provide for acontrol for tuning or other electrical units, comprising drum memberscoupled therewith, which drum members have indicia thereon capable ofbeing visible to the operator at illuminated apertures in the frontpanel whereby to indicate the degree of displacement of said electricalunits; the said drum elements being actuated through the friction driveoperable from the front panel of the radio receiver.

These and other advantages, capabilities and features of the inventionwill appear from the subjoined detail description of one specificembodiment of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhich Figure -1 represents a front view of the device.

Figure 2 represents. a plan view of the device.

Figure 3 represents a side elevation partly in section of the device.

Figure 4 represents a plan view partly in section of the operatingmechanism in the device.

Referring to the reference characters in the drawing numeral 10represents the front panel of a radio receiver upon which there ismounted an escutcheon plate 11 having therein the offset projection 12which is disposed into the aperture formed in the panel and in whichoffset portion of said escutcheon plate there are adapted to be stampedor cut out portions 13 and 14, to respectively allow for the disclosureof the indicating means on the dial to be later described, and thepassage of light from the illuminating means to be later described uponthe indicating means disclosed in the aperture 13 whereby the operatormay have a visible illuminated record of the changes in the conditionswithin the receiver.

To the rear of the panel 10 there are dis posed the electrical elementsto be controlled and which in this instance are indicated as tuningunits or condensers 15 which are coupled to drum elements 16 wherebyrotation of the drum about its shaft 17 will cause the rotation, of thecondensers since the condenser shaft is an integral extension of thedrive shaft or vice versa, the lock nut 18 on th bearing member 19positioned in the condenser frame, being adapted to provide for a means,serving in conjunction with the pillar 20 to provide a two point supportfor the condenser 15 on the frame 21.

The shaft 17 as shown in Figure 4 is adapted to fit in the hub 22 of thedrum 16 being screw threaded as at 23 at one extremity thereof for beinglocked for rotation with the drum by means of the nut 24. 'An enlargedshoulder 25 is formed integrally with the shaft 17, the shoulderextending only for a portion of the length of the shaft but having oneextremity thereof forming a flush contact, with the face or surface ofthe hub 22 of the drum 16 and being adapted to rotate within the journalor hearing 26 comprising a sleeve formed integral with the supportbracket 21, which extends to a point adjacent but not touching thesurface of the hub 22.

The shaft 17 is locked for lateral displacement, adjacent the face ofthe support bracket 21 by means of a lock nut 27 having a set screw 28therein, the shaft being adapted to extend through the end plates of thecondenser, and carrying the rotor plates thereon through means wellknown in the art preferably through either a casting carrying the platesand fixed to the shaft or a series of washers between the plates and thewhole of which are locked for rotation with the shaft.

The drum member 16 comprises a casting formed of a phenolic condensationproduct, hollow in its interior, and having a wall in the form of acircular projection formed integral with the outer face or base thereof,this wall 29 being integrally formed with the base adapted to be annularand adjacent the outer periphery of the drum and serving to be contactedby driving means to be later described. The circumferential or bodyformed portion 30 of the drum 16 has either pasted or fixed thereto inany manner an indicator strip 31, which indicator strip has indiciathereon, which indicia are visible through the apertures 13 in theescutcheon plate 11, as shown in Figure 1.

The driving means for the actuation of the drum comprises a plurality offriction disks 1 32 and 33 formed on the drive shaft 34,

mounted in bearing 35, which is locked to the front panel by the nut andWasher formation 36, and passes through the arm 37 of the frame supportmember 21,'which arm is bent right angularly to the body of the framesupport and maintained in fixed posi-' tion, so as to be pressed towardthe inner wall of the panel by means of the bushing 39 on one end. ofthe bearing so that the bearing 35 serves to both carry the drive shaft34, and the support bracket 21 carr ing the mechanism actuated by thedrive sha t.

The friction disks 32 and 33 are positioned on opposite sides of theprojection 29, on the drum, the disk 33 being adapted to abut thesurface of the bearing 35 and being fixed to the shaft, the second ofsaid disks 32 being adapted to be positioned on the opposite side of theprojection or wall 29 and having a reduced shoulder 40 upon which springmember 41 on the shaft 34 is adapted to rest, said spring member beingcompressed between nuts 42 threaded to the shaft 34 at its extremity,and the side wall 43 of the friction disk 32 so as to urge the samelaterally at all times into contact with the surface of the wall 29; oneof the two disks 33 being fixed to the shaft or formed integrallythereof and the other disk 32 being forced by pressure to befrictionally rotatable therewith. The actuation of the shaft 34 throughmovement of the control knob 38 will cause frictional contact of thedisks 32 and 33 with the projection 29 and thus the actuation of thedrum and with it the rotor plates of the condenser associated therewith.

Adjacent the projection 12 of the escutcheon plate extending interiorlyof said panel 10 there is adapted to be carried on the bracket 44, onelectric light 45 having terminals 46 and 47 for interconnecting thesame with a source of current, the electric light being positioneddirectly above the aperture 14 of the projection 12 of the escutcheonplate, so that the indicia on the drum are visible to the observerthrough the apertures 13 in the escutcheon plate are illuminated by thepassage of light rays along the cut out portion 14 and striking theexposed indicia, as in F igure 1, the cut out portion 14 being as shownin Figure 1 in the shape of a chamber through which light may be guideddownwardly.

It is obvious that various changes and modifications may be made to thedetails of construction without departing from the general spirit of theinvention set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a radio receiver, the combination with a front'panel havingcontrol means thereon, of a shaft fixed to said control means, andpassing through said panel, tuning means to the rear of said panel, adrum carrying indicating means coupled with said tuning means, means onsaid shaft for rotating the drum, an escutcheon plate on the front ofthe panel having apertured projections extending rearwardly through anopening in said panel, the first of the apertures in said projectionsserving to disclose indicia on said drum, and the second of saidapertures serving to allow passage of'light from illuminating meanspositioned on the rear of said panel upon the disclosed indicia on thedrum whereby to make the same visible to the observer.

2. In a radio receiver,.the combination with a front panel havingcontrol means thereon, of tuning means to the rear of said panel, a drummember carrying indicia coupled with said tuning means, means operableby said control member for actuating said drum member, an apertureformed in said front panel, whereby to disclose indicia on said drummember and a second aperture in a plane angularly disposed with respectto said first named aperture and means adjacent and to the rear of thesecond named aperture for illuminating the indicia disclosed in saidfirst named aperture.

3. In a radio receiver, the combination of a front panel, of controlmeans to the front of said panel, a shaft fixed to the control means andpassing to the rear of said panel, tuning means to the rear of saidpanel, a drum member carrying indicating means thereon coupled with saidtuning means, and positioned to the rear of said panel, means on saidshaft for actuating the drum member, an aperture in said front panel, anescutcheon plate fixed to the front of the panel and having aperturedprojections extending within the aperture in the panel and rearwardlythereof, some of the apertures of said escutcheon plate being adapted todisclose a portion of the indicating means, illuminating means to therear of said panel, and the other of said apertures in the escutcheonplate being adapted to direct light from said illuminating means on saiddisclosed portions of said indicating means.

4. In a radio receiver, the combination with a front panel, having anescutcheon plate thereon, of tuning means to the rear of said panel,indicating means coupled with said tuning means, and disposed rearwardlyof said escutcheon plate, control means passing through said panel andescutcheon plate for actuating said indicating means, a plurality ofapertures in said escutcheon plate in different formed planes, theapertures in one plane being adapted to disclose indicia on saidindicating means, and means adjacent the apertures in the other planefor illumi nating the indicating means disclosed through said firstnamed apertures.

5. In a radio receiver, the combination with a front panel, having anescutcheon plate thereon, of a tuning mechanism, to the rear of saidpanel, indicating means associated with said tuning means, an aperturein said escutcheon plate, for disclosing the indicia on the indicatingmeans, and a second aperture in said escutcheon plate, angularlydisposed from the first said aperture, and means adjacent said secondaperture for illuminating the-indicia on the portion of the indicatingmeans disclosed in said first named aperture.

6. In a radio receiver, the combination with tuning means, andindicating means associated therewith, of a panel member carrying acontrol through which said indicating and tuning means may be actuated,illuminating means to the rear of said panel, said panel having providedtherein, a plurality of apertures, angularly disposed from one another,whereby one of said apertures may disclose the indicia on the indicatingmeans and the other of said apertures may allow the passage of lightfrom the illuminating means in the direction of the disclosed indicia,whereby to provide for clear illuminated visibility.

7. In a radio receiver the combination with a front panel having controlmeans thereon, of tuning means to the rear of said panel, a drum membercarrying indicating means on its circumferential periphery, said drummember being coupled with tuning means, a circular flange formed alongthe base of said drum member, and offset from the outer periphery ofsaid drum member, a shaft extending from said control means through saidpanel, and friction driving means on the shaft, coacting with saidflange, whereby to actuate said drum and said tuning means.

8. In a radio receiver the combination with a front panel, havingcontrol means thereon, of tuning means to the rear of said panel, a drummember carrying indicating means on its circumferential periphery, saiddrum member being coupled with said tuning means, a circular flangeformed along the base of said drum member and oflset from the outerperiphery of said driving member, a shaft extending from said controlmeans through said panel, and friction driving means on the shaft,coacting with said flange, whereby to actuate said drum and said tuningmeans, and means for maintaining the pressure of said friction drivingmeans, whereby to provide for constant contact of the same against theflange on said drum.

9. In a radio receiver, the combination with a panel, of control meansto the front of said panel, a shaft fixed to the control means andpassing to the rear of said panel, tuning means to the rear ofsaidpanel, a drum member carrying indicating means on its circumferentialperiphery, said drum being coupled with tuning means and positioned tothe rear of said panel, an aperture in said panel through which aportion of said indi cating means may be visible, and an annularprojection formed on the base of said drum adjacent the circumferentialperiphery thereof, and means on said shaft for frictionally contactingwith said projection, whereby to actuate the drum member and the tuningmeans.

JQHN GELQSQ.

